A sad day for the Big East

The move by West Virginia head coach Rich Rodriguez to Michigan should be seen as potential good news for Syracuse fans. Rich's teams were 6-1 vs. the Orange, winning the last six in a row. The average score of those games was roughly 34-12. When Rodriguez arrived as WVU's head coach SU led the longtime series 29-19; it now stands at 30-25. Before Rich was hired, WVU's longest victory streak in a series that began in 1945 was three.

So, in one sense Orange fans should be rejoicing this morning, even though WVU's dyanmic duo of Pat White and Steve Slaton are scheduled to be back in the lineup with SU visits Morgantown next season, Rodriguez's departure notwithstanding.

But in another sense today is a sad one for the Big East. Rodriguez, who along with Rutgers' Greg Schiano enjoyed the longest tenure of league coaches (at least while they were in the league; South Florida's Jim Leavitt has more seniority at his school overall), was an outspoken advocate for the conference during the dark days following realignment when the national media was piling on.

But he did more than simply lead cheers for his league. He went out and gave it instant credibility when his Mountaineers stunned No. 8 Georgia 38-35 in the Sugar Bowl following the 2005 season. That hushed all talk of the league losing its seat at the BCS table.

Many "experts" will question his ability to mold Michigan's old-school, pro style offense into the spread-option, no-huddle scheme he used to make WVU a national power, but in my opinion those folks are selling Rodriguez short. When he had strong-armed quarterbacks at Tulane he passed out of the spread . . . a lot. When he had QBs who could throw and run, he did both. When he had QBs who could run, he ran . . . a lot. The key to his success is his ability to evaluate his talent accurately on both sides of the ball and adjust accordingly. He will do the same at Michigan. Whether he enjoys the same success remains to be seen, but his ability to coach should not be underestimated.

What will be more interesting, in my opinion, is how Rich's personality plays in Ann Arbor. His down-home style fit perfectly in Morgantown, where he once played. He could entertain listeners for a long time with stories of growing up in West Virginia, dating, his early days of coaching, etc. I wonder how those tales will sell at UM, a setting I found to be somewhat stuffy when I visited there in 1998 (ah, the days of Donovan McNabb).

Anyway, the Wolverines' gain is the Big East's loss, in my opinion. It shows the strength of the current league when coaches such as Mark Dantonio, Bobby Petrino and Rodriguez are wooed every time a major opening comes up. Yet, I wonder how many such losses the league can absorb before it begins to slip again. As long as the new hires are guys like Cincinnati's Brian Kelly, I assumed all will be well, but this is a tricky business. The loss of Rich is especially tough, as he was a native son coaching at his alma mater.